


Compulsion

by fangirlingtodeath513



Series: Season 13 Codas [18]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Cas is a badass, Episode: s13e20 Coda, Episode: s13e20 Unfinished Business, Gabriel's meddling, M/M, Post-Episode: s13e20 Unfinished Business
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-30
Updated: 2018-04-30
Packaged: 2019-04-30 02:07:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,367
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14486475
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fangirlingtodeath513/pseuds/fangirlingtodeath513
Summary: He's not going to die just because the Winchesters won't talk. He's not. He's had enough loss of freedom in the last few years. He'll make them talk if it's the last thing he does.





	Compulsion

**Author's Note:**

> This was my first time writing canon Gabriel and it was really, _really_ fun. I'm really proud of how it turned out :D
> 
>  
> 
> [rebloggable tumblr link](https://fangirlingtodeath513.tumblr.com/post/173441616459/compulsion-a-13x20-coda-read-here-on-ao3)

Listening to the two of them yammering on down the hall is nearly unbearable, really. Neither of them are saying what they want to and, quite honestly, it’s infuriating. He’s not really sure how Castiel does it on a daily basis. His eyes flick up from the ground when he hears footsteps approaching and he flashes Castiel a grin. “Heya, Cassie. Been a long time, brother.”

 

Castiel nods once, motioning for Gabriel to enter the room with the hand that isn’t holding a pile of bedding. So not in a chatty mood, then. Well, he can fix that. He pushes the door open, gesturing for Castiel to go inside first.

 

“So how do you stand them, huh? I mean, I know you can hear them even back here, it’s gotta be annoying. They’re just talking around each other.”

 

“It’s a Winchester habit.” Castiel says, softly, and wow, _that’s_ new. Castiel had always been firm in his command, never timid and submissive. It’s… interesting, to say the least.

 

“Yeah, I kinda got that. But isn’t it annoying? Why haven’t you, like, tied them to chairs and made them talk?”

 

Castiel turns to stare at him with a raised eyebrow. “Why would I do that? They’re adults, if they want to talk, they’ll talk.”

 

Gabriel snorts, shaking his head and leaning against the wall as he crosses his arms over his chest. “Right, because they’re the first family to avoid talking after their dad screwed them over.”

 

“If you have something to say, then _say it_.” Castiel hisses, and it catches him a bit off guard. Emotions. It’s such a human thing, and it’s kinda shocking to see good little soldier Cas doing such a human thing.

 

He raises his eyebrows in surprise, putting his hands up defensively. “Dude, relax, I was just asking. I admit, they’ve cleaned up a lot of messes they shouldn’t have had to.”

 

Castiel glares at him for a moment more before turning back to the bed. The only sound in the room is the rustling of sheets as Castiel makes the bed and the silence is making him antsy. “Heaven’s shutting down.” Castiel says, suddenly, his voice deceivingly steady.

 

“Heaven’s… what?”

 

Castiel pauses and he can practically see the steadying breath the angel takes. “Heaven’s shutting down. There’s less than twenty angels left alive, including us. There aren’t enough angels in Heaven to properly power it, so it’s begun to shut down. And if it does-”

 

“Every single soul in Heaven falls back to Earth and wreaks havoc before ending up in the veil when a hunter catches up with them. Fuck.” He runs a hand through his hair (another human gesture, though this time it’s him that’s picked one up), and Castiel finally turns to face him.

 

“Yes. I’m afraid there aren’t enough hunters to deal with that magnitude, though. There’s more souls in Heaven than there are on Earth, currently, and even if they aren’t violent right away, they’ll deteriorate into vengeful spirits.”

 

“So… why don’t you call Dad, then? You guys have seen him, right? He can fix it, bring some angels back or make some more or somethin’.”

 

Castiel shakes his head and tucks his hands in his pockets, his shoulders hunching slightly. It makes him look smaller. “He hasn’t answered. I’ve been praying for weeks, before I even knew about this, but he doesn’t care. The only reason he came back before was because Amara was intent on killing him.”

 

Gabriel pauses at that, narrowing his eyes. “Did you say _Amara_? As in, Dad’s sister, the one we locked away oh-so-many millennia ago? Gave the Mark to Cain and all that jazz?”

 

Castiel nods slowly, clearing his throat. “Dean, he took the Mark on to finish off the final Knight of Hell, Abaddon, before she destroyed the entire planet. He… ultimately succumbed and became a demon. Rowena and Sam were able to remove the Mark but it ultimately released Amara.”

 

Gabriel laughs harshly, shaking his head. “They stop one apocalypse and bounce right off to the next one. Incredible.”

 

Castiel glares at him and, despite the fact that the angel is much less powerful than him, he can see the bond between he and Dean and he’s sort of scared of what Castiel will do to protect the older Winchester. “You want to blame the _Winchesters_ for this? They’re the only ones cleaning up these cosmic messes! God certainly couldn’t be bothered, Michael and Lucifer are insane, Raphael was power-hungry, and you disappeared centuries ago. The only people who gave a damn what happened to this world are down the hall.”

 

He watches Castiel’s grace flare and reach for Dean’s soul with fascination. He’s never seen a bond like this one, and the intensity of it is downright terrifying. He can see the snarl on Cas’s face, his _real_ face, so he holds his hands up defensively. “Look, man, I don’t want to fight. I left because I was tired of cleaning up Dad’s messes, and I’m guessing you are too. So why don’t we just save your family, make sure alt Michael can’t get over here and destroy us, and then we can all live happily ever after.”

 

Castiel stares at him for a minute before giving him a curt nod and leaving. He stands still for a moment before smirking and snapping his fingers once. He may not have enough mojo to open a portal, but he’s got enough to make those two idiots talk to each other, for real. Besides, the three of them being on the same page will help him avoid his own death when they finally make it to the other world.

 

 **·     ·     ·** ✤      **·     ·     ·**

“Dean… we’re going to that place, and we’re gonna save Jack and Mom. Together. And… if something happens, we will deal with it. _Together_.” Sam turns and starts to walk out of the room before pausing and turning back to Dean. “And if we die? We’ll do that together, too.”

 

Dean shakes his head once Sam’s back is turned, sighing quietly. _Right, Sammy. Sure._ “No we won’t, Sam.” His eyes widen and he snaps his mouth shut before he can say anything else. That’s definitely not what he wanted to say, no matter how much he’d been thinking it.

 

Sam turns back to him, his eyebrows raised. “We won’t? Why’s that?”

 

He swallows, his mind turning over excuses, settling on _I just mean we’re not gonna die over there._ Except that isn’t what actually comes out of his mouth. “Because I won’t let you die, no matter what. You, Mom, Jack and Cas are coming home, even if it means I don’t.” He slaps a hand over his mouth, eyes wide and startled. Why can’t he say what he wants to, why is he saying what he’s actually feeling? What the hell?

                                                                            

He doesn’t have much time to worry about it, though, because Sam’s walking back to him and he’s _pissed_. “That’s idiotic, Dean. You can’t just sacrifice yourself for us.”

 

 _If it comes down to it, I would._ “I’ve been doing it all my life, Sam. I was raised to think that your life was more valuable than mine, I was just a good little soldier. Expendable.” Oh, for fuck’s sake.

 

He sees the hurt flash across Sam’s face and, while he absolutely hadn’t intended to say those words, it… actually feels kinda nice to have it out there in the open. “Dean, your life isn’t worth less than mine. You’re not expendable.”

 

 _This isn’t what I’m trying to say, I don’t know why this is happening._ “But if it comes down to it, I’m not going to hesitate. I’ll do whatever it takes to get the four of you home alive.”

 

“What makes you think we want to come home if you don’t come with us?” Well shit, that’s not Sam’s voice. He turns to see Cas standing in the doorway to the bedrooms. God only knows how long he’s been standing there.

  
“Because then you’ll be alive. You’ll have Jack back,” he says, turning to Sam, “And you’ll have Mom back. You’ll be happy.”

 

Sam shakes his head, shock and disbelief written across his face. “Dean, what makes you think we would be happy if you sacrificed yourself for us? How could that _possibly_ make us feel any better?

 

 _Because Mom and Jack will be safe, and both of you will be alive. That’s all that matters._ “Because all I do is fuck everything up anyway.”

 

“ _What_?” Sam and Cas ask simultaneously, eyes narrowed in his direction.

 

“Oh, don’t act like I’m wrong. I jumpstarted the first apocalypse because I was weak and couldn’t hold out in Hell. I left hunting after you died and Cas didn’t have anyone to turn to when the angels went nuclear, so that one’s my fault. I let Amara out because I couldn’t deal with the Mark. It’s my fault Mom’s trapped over there, because I couldn’t deal with-” He cuts himself off quickly with a hand over his mouth, his eyes wide. Way too close for comfort, he’d almost admitted how hard Cas’s death had been on him this time around.

 

“You’re an idiot.” Castiel says angrily, his glare fixed on Dean. “None of that is your fault, Dean. If it wasn’t you, some other righteous man would’ve broken the seal. I made my choices. I could’ve gone to you and asked for help, but I didn’t. That’s not on you.”

 

“I let Amara out. I was the one who found the spell. You had a solution that would’ve kept her locked away, but I… I couldn’t deal with it.” Sam says gently, frowning.

 

“You don’t fuck anything up, Dean. We want you here. _I_ want you here. I-” Castiel cuts himself off and he sees the angel’s eyes widen before he turns and stalks back down the hallway he came from. Weird. Though it’s still not the weirdest thing about this entire exchange.

 

“Look, Sam…” _I don’t want to sacrifice myself. I want to be here with you. But if it saves your lives, I’ll do it._ “I don’t want to die. I thought I was ready, I thought I’d go down hunting, that I’d die alone, but… I don’t want that. So let’s figure out what we’re going to do when we get there so we can avoid anyone dying.”

 

 **·     ·     ·** ✤      **·     ·     ·**

 

He barely hears the door creak open before he’s being spun around and shoved against the wall so hard that it leaves a dent. Castiel’s got two fistfuls of his shirt and his glaring at him with all the hatred he can possibly muster. He still kinda looks like an angry kitten though. “Remove it, Gabriel. _Now_.”

 

Gabriel raises his eyebrows, holding back a smirk. “I’m not sure what you’re talking about, brother of mine. I haven’t done anything.”

 

“You’re compelling them to say what they feel rather than what they’re trying to say. Stop it.”

 

“You sure caught on quick, Cassie. Why would I want to remove it? If I’m gonna put my life on the line for their mission, I want them on the same page.”

 

“That’s not your decision to make, you spineless coward. Remove the compulsion.”

 

Gabriel’s eyes go dark and he glares right back. “Sure you don’t want to go back out there? Might be the only chance you have of hearing Dean say that he loves you.” He’s barely got the sentence out before Castiel’s grace is flaring and he’s being shoved entirely through the wall, sprawling on the floor of the bedroom next door. Castiel’s on him in a second, his hand twitching toward his angel blade. Luckily for Gabriel, the sound of the wall collapsing is enough to attract the Winchesters. Dean pulls Cas off him and Sam helps him up, glancing between him and Cas.

 

“What the _hell_ is going on here?” Sam asks, eyes narrowed.

 

“Gabriel’s placed you under compulsion. He’s forcing you to say what you actually feel.” Castiel says harshly, causing Dean to tighten the arm around him.

 

Sam glances at Dean with a raised eyebrow. “That explains a lot.”

 

Dean doesn’t say anything, but Castiel can feel the embarrassment radiating from his soul. Slowly, he loosens his arm around Castiel once he’s sure the angel’s done attacking Gabriel. “Why’d you shove him through the wall?”

 

Gabriel smirks as Castiel glares at him, avoiding Dean’s question. “What’s the matter, Cassie? Cat got your tongue? Go on, clue them in.” Castiel doesn’t budge, so he pulls at the little grace he has left, snapping his fingers.

 

Cas tries to resist, he really does, but he’s no match for an archangel. Even one as low-powered as he is right now. “I told him to remove the compulsion but he refused. I called him a coward and he told me I should return to you because it might be the only chance I have to hear you say that you love me.”

 

He watches Sam squint at the angel and shake his head. “Cas, of course we love you. You’re our family.”

 

Gabriel shakes his head in disbelief, glancing at Dean and Castiel before turning to Sam. “My Dad, you really are thick-headed, aren’t you? You weren’t part of the equation, Sam.”

 

It takes a minute, but realization finally dawns on Sam’s face as he turns to look at Dean and Castiel, who are very pointedly ignoring eye contact. Gabriel rolls his eyes, waving his hand to remove the compulsion. “If I’m gonna risk my life over there for you three idiots, you need to have a nice, _long_ chat about where your priorities lie. I just got my freedom back, I’m not going to lose it because you can’t deal with your shit.”

 

With that, he stalks past them and towards the entrance to the bunker, brushing dust off himself as he goes. He needs to get outside and spread his wings. Maybe try to convince God to get of his lazy ass and help them, for once. The bunker’s door clicks shut behind him as he tilts his head toward the sun and closes his eyes, unfurling his wings and sending a desperate plea in God’s direction.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on Tumblr [here(:](https://fangirlingtodeath513.tumblr.com/)
> 
>  
> 
> **Please don’t post my works anywhere without my express written permission.**


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